A Key Ingredient for Trails

At Dunbar Cave State Park, recycled Christmas Trees become a natural enhancement for the park's many hiking trails. Each year, about 1,000 Christmas Trees are mulched for use at the park. Volunteers help spread the the mulch along the trails, which helps to cushion the walkways for visitors and deter erosion.

"The reason Christmas Trees are so important is by definition they don't have any invasive species or seeds," David Boen, a Friends of Dunbar Cave board member, told The Leaf Chronicle. "The only mulch, in fact, that Dunbar Cave has is from Christmas Trees."

Mulched Christmas Trees provide cushioning for hikers and joggers, as well as preventing water run-off.